Movie Review: I AM

Cast: Juhi Chawla, Nandita Das, Manisha Koirala, Sanjay Suri, Rahul Bose, Purab Kohli, Radhika Apte, Shernaz Patel, Arjun Mathur, Anurag Kashyap, Abhimanyu Singh

Director: Onir

Onir’s I AM has four small stories and in each of these stories the protagonist is in search of its identity. Afia, played by Nandita Das is a divorced woman who feels that she doesn’t have to depend on a man to have a baby and instead decides to use services of a sperm donor (Purab Kohli). Megha, played by Juhi Chawla who was forced to leave her hometown due to communal violence, returns to Srinagar to sell her house only to realize that Muslims who were left behind are still suffering and are struggling to live a life of dignity. Abhimanyu, played by Sanjay Suri is a victim of child abuse by his stepfather (Anurag Kashyap) and is still recovering from this incident. Omar (Rahul Bose), who is exploited in his own country and the only reason being that he is a homosexual.

The performances in the film are absolutely brilliant and they leave an everlasting impression on the viewer’s mind and heart. The casting director has picked up a perfect cast. The awkward talk in the hospital waiting room between Nandita Das and Purab Kohli has come out beautifully. Just watching Manisha Koirala and Juhi Chawla act together after so long makes you realize that there is no one from the young generation who can match the grace and the brilliant acting of the two most elegant ladies of the Indian Cinema. Rahul Bose has proved again that with his acting skills he can perform any character with ease. Abhimanyu Singh as a cruel cop leaves a lasting impression on the audiences.

The four stories are sensibly written and the sensitive issues are handled with maturity. Onir’s direction is amazing. He has given the treatment the theme of the stories demand. Despite the four stories not being connected, the individuality of each of the story is maintained. Onir’s films have always been different. He always tried to show a different perception to a particular problem. I AM is one of those films.

I AM is now available on DVDs and VCDs.

Ratings- 3/5

Mumbai city: An outsider’s perspective (Column)

When I was moving to Mumbai two years back I was very excited. This city has been called the replica of Manhattan city, New York. The second reason that moving to a new place always excites me. It gives me an opportunity to see and imagine the unseen.

But, my experience of Mumbai was quite different from what I expected. My first expectation was shattered when I saw the dirty water at Marine Drive. I had expected crystal clear blue water. That is what I had inferred from the Hindi movies which were shot near Arabian Sea.

Local trains- the lifeline of Mumbai is indeed an interesting experience. In the start I had difficulty in finding which train goes to which destination. I was lost twice at C.S.T. In the ladies compartment there is something called ‘booking of seats’. If someone is getting down at a station before you, you can ‘book’ the seat which means no one can sit on that seat apart from you. And if someone sits on that seat even by mistake, they are in trouble. Umbrellas, fists, cold water everything will be used effectively- just for a seat!

Personally, I like rains. I come from a place where it barely rains for a week. But, the monsoon here stays for four months! It rains the entire day. I love to wear different footwear everyday but because of the rains I have to wear the same floaters every day.

The night life of the city is amazing and much safer than the place I come from. After mid-night you can find people partying or strolling near Marine Drive sipping a steaming cup of tea.

I hail from the capital of the country yet the experience I have had is pretty different. And I can never stop knowing the city. Every single day I discover something new about this city. This is a city where you’ll feel at home.

Profile: The Girl Next Door

The famous American sitcom ‘FRIENDS’ ended almost seven years ago but characters have continued to live with us. One character that one can never forget is Rachel Green portrayed to perfection by Jennifer Aniston.

(Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt in happier times)

Jennifer Aniston is fondly called as ‘the perfect girl next door’. She has gained critical success for her performances in movies like The Good Girl, Bruce Almighty, Marley & Me and Office Space. She has had her greatest commercial successes with films like The Break-Up, Just Go With It, Derailed, The Switch and Along Came Polly. Her latest movie, Horrible Bosses has opened to rave reviews and is going strong at the box-office. She is probably one of the few actors who have made a successful transition from television to the big screen.

Before FRIENDS, Aniston starred in unsuccessful sitcoms. FRIENDS changed her career graph. Her convincing portrayal earned her multiple nominations and awards. She has won prestigious awards including an Emmy, a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild Award. She has won the People Choice Award thrice. The sitcom was so popular that for the last two seasons of Friends, she and her co-stars received a salary of whopping one million dollars per episode making them the highest TV actors of all time according to Guinness World Book of Records (2005).

Her characters are real-life inspired. You can always find a little bit of Jennifer in each of her character. When she was going through her own divorce she was filming The Break-Up with Vince Vaughn. The genre Aniston is more comfortable with is comedy and is known for her amazing comic timing. Recently, she went out of her comfort zone and played a sexual predator in black comedy, ‘Horrible Bosses’.

Her personal life has been the topic of discussion in the media for years. America’s sweetheart got married to Brad Pitt in 2005. Finally when Hollywood had started thinking that perfect marriage exists, the couple got divorced in 2005. After her divorce, her love life has been paparazzi’s favourite topic.

Post her divorce; she has been a role model for single women who are going through separation or heart break. She once said, ‘ I never liked Sex and the city, the kind of thing where women feel empowered once they find the man, it’s  just not up my alley. I don’t believe it.’

According to Jennifer, the media has got her love life all wrong. She says, ‘This whole poor-lonely-Jen thing, this idea that I’m unlucky in love. I actually feel I have been unbelievably lucky in love. I am right where I’m supposed to be.’

The actor is rumoured to be dating actor Justin Theroux whom she met while filming her upcoming movie, Wanderlust.

She looked happy and radiant when she visited the show ‘Good Morning America’. Speaking about her personal life she said with her trademark smile, ‘I am extremely lucky and extremely happy.’


Photo credit- www.hirado.hu

Tete-a-tete with a Fashion Designer

Giselle, a designer, has her own fashion store in Malad, Mumbai. She is also a cosmologist from Christine Valmy School of Esthetics.

Q1- How did your career begin?

I did my course in fashion designing at Clare secretarial school, Bandra. Then I had the opportunity of working at photographer Ashok Salian’s office. It was a good experience for me to understand about the work culture of fashion industry. I got to see the glamour as well as the hard work the models put in their work. I also had an interaction with people in advertising. Later, I studied cosmetology which helped my career too.

Q2- When and with what motive did you launch your fashion store?

I opened my store, ‘Beverly Hills’ on 16 September 2009. People have a notion that designer wear will be out of their budget. With the idea to cater customers with affordable designer wear, I launched this store. We are doing well since then.

Q3- What makes ur dresses stand apart from the usual?

The materials are imported from China, Dubai and Singapore. The fabric quality is taken care of. We not only have western outfits but also indo-western outfits. We take care of overweight women as well unlike other designer stores. We provide them the best possible fitting of the gown.

Q4- Currently, who include your clientele

I can’t take names but customer types vary greatly there are a few celebrities like a film producer’s wife, TV actors and Indipop singer, Jimmy Gill are regular at the store. Then this happens that there are a few who pick up an outfit once and crib about a certain money they shelled out on it.

(Giselle at her store with her Exclusive designs)

Q5- What is the price range of your products?

The designer tops start from Rs. 1200. Designer dresses start from Rs. 1500. The Designer Kurtis are big hit at my store. Soon we will be launching our very own jewellery for youth ranging from Rs. 99 to Rs 199. The pieces will be exclusive here.

Its Carnival time!

The college fest time has arrived in Mumbai. The Wilson College BMM fest ‘Polaris’ started today and the theme they have chosen is Carnival.

For the promotion of their fest a Carnival Parade was held on 10^th of this month. Wilson BMM students and faculty came out in full support. Ex-students also joined in. The students walked from Wilson College to Wilson Gymkhana. It served as a great PR exercise since many contingents participated in the Parade. They were dressed up as clowns or fairies or were in a completely different ‘colourful avatar’. Tricycles, Cycles and Victoria could be spotted in the crowd. Polaris mascot 'Polly' was leading the Parade. The success of this event raised everyone’s expectations from the fest.

Today, the crowd came out in huge numbers and many colleges participated. But, according to senior & ex-students the crowd has decreased when compared to last year.

The fest had a rocky start as one of the workshops got cancelled. The crowd became a little restless as no other event was taking place at that moment. Soon, the volunteers were able to pacify the crowd. The Radio event was a grand success. Participation was in large numbers and many supporters came in to support their contingents.

Since last few years, the ‘talent show type’ event in Polaris called ‘Showtime’ garnered a lot of praise and success. But, this year Showtime was scrapped. Instead of that, the dance event took place which was the last event of the day. The college hall was a little ill-equipped to accommodate all the contingents but, the crowd cheered for every performance making the dance event, the most memorable event of Day 1.

(The Polaris Parade)

Day 2 also promises a lot of action including the new event of Polaris ‘Fashion Show’ and workshops by eminent media personalities. Let’s see how the rest of the fest shapes up.

Business in the capital

From being a retail and trading hub, Delhi is now an important centre of modern business. In its 100^th year, a look at the business growth in the Capital.

Delhi completes its centenary as the capital of modern India in December 2011. However, Delhi has always served as the financial capital for most empires including the Mughal Empire.

Earlier, the core of the city lay in the northern parts: Chandini Chowk, Kashmere Gate and Civil Lines flourishing with trade and commerce. The small villages and hamlets in the southern part of the city had a motley group of communities living in them: Jats, Brahmins, Christians, Muslims and Gujjars. They reared animals, engaged in agriculture and worked as labourers in Shahjahanabad, the city established by Shah Jahan. Chandini Chowk, was also established by Shah Jahan. Today it is Asia’s largest wholesale market but during Shah Jahan’s reign it was a market planned especially for his daughter.

Food has always been a focal point for the city, and many believe the modern day Indian food industry originated in Delhi with eateries like Karim’s , which serves authentic Mughalai food. Haji Zahiruddin, founder of Karim’s belonged to a family whose bloodline extends back to the chefs who prepared feasts in the courts of Mughal emperors. Haji Karimuddin, the grandfather of the present owner established his shop in the same place where his descendants now prepare their family recipes. The recipes are still a secret.


Another famous food joint is Parantha Wali Gali.  This Gali got its name in 1911. Of the 20 parantha shops in the late 1960s (all belonging to the same family), only three remain.

In the late 1980s many of them closed shop and moved out, though today this place is experiencing a revival and some shops are being run by the sixth generation of the same family. This food joint is the essence of the capital. The parantha served here can give competition to any major food chain throughout the country.

Khan Chacha is also one of the famous eateries of New Delhi. Located in Khan Market this is one of the food outlets that attracts tourists and residents.

Mumbai vs. Delhi

K.L Kaul, 84, retired as a scientist from Indian agricultural research, has been living in the city for more than 60 years. He describes Delhi as the ‘city of Babus and bicycles’, He also added that people usually migrated from other states and their only motive was to earn money and send to their families. They didn’t have any business perspectives.

Mrs Kavita Singh, who is a government school teacher specializing in History feels that no industry can be situated in the capital city – she cites Washington D.C as an example and says this applies to New Delhi too.

Although, it was not that Delhi hadn’t tried to establish itself as a commercial hub. The Escorts group, an engineering company which is one of the leading manufacturers of India tried to establish itself in Faridabad. But again, the main problem was the power shortage and industries cannot run without power. Eventually, the Escorts group had to shift.

Mrs Singh says that the one thing that doesn’t work for Delhi is that it doesn’t have sea ports. Sea is the cheapest way to transport. And if the transportation cost rises, it is difficult to compete in the world market. There are a lot of corporate offices in New Delhi but no big industry can be erected in the capital. This works in the favour of Mumbai, Kolkata and Gujarat.

GROWING REAL ESTATE HUB

One of the important businesses now in the city is real estate. A classic example would be DLF, where in last two decades farmland has given way to urban development. K.P Singh, the head of Delhi’s DLF group has transformed fragmented holdings of agricultural land into a modern metropolis. Raghuvendra Singh, who is K.P Singh’s father-in-law, started DLF in 1946 before partition. Now it is a thriving business in many other parts of the country as well.

Real estate is unofficially also known as the business of ‘Jats’ in Delhi.

Occupationally, since most refugees in Delhi came from the urban areas of West Pakistan, they moved towards trade and commerce. In many parts of Delhi, shops and businesses were taken over by such refugees.  About 90 per cent of the shops in  Chandni Chowk's Cloth Market, for example, originally  belonged to the old residents of Delhi but over time Punjabi refugees took over the bulk of the business, with a mere 10 per cent  eventually remaining in the control of the old merchants. In fact, this is the primary reason why Delhi, post-independence, became a big retail market city.

K.L Kaul also adds that the refugees who entered Delhi after the partition have only opened shops in places like Khan Market and Chandini Chowk. Those shops are still present in those areas but they have been unable to evolve into something huge.

Rise of modern business

If we talk about modern business environment which includes the IT, healthcare and service sector, Delhi has scored big time. All the upcoming IT companies are establishing their offices in Gurgaon.

The call centre culture was first started in Gurgaon and then it spread to other parts of the country. This also gave an opportunity to the less educated to work and gain experience.

Coaching centres have changed the face of this city. They started from one room in the owner’s home and now they are converted into a franchise. The most important example being Akash Institute and P.T. Sachdeva, they are famous throughout the country.

Though Mumbai has the benefit of Stock Exchange and Sea Ports, Delhi on the other hand is giving rise to new modern businesses which is changing the country and is putting India on the world map.

Sadhana Amte passes away

Sadhana Amte, social worker and widow of Gandhian Baba Amte died from a prolonged illness on Saturday around 5 pm at Anandwan, their home for the leprosy-affected at Warora in Chandrapur district. She was 86 years old.

Family sources said that she was not keeping well since Baba’s death but her health deteriorated in the last month. She is survived by two sons, Vikas and Prakash and two adopted daughters, Renuka and Bijlee.

She was born on May 5, 1926. She got married to Baba Amte on December 18, 1946. In 1949, Baba set up Anandwan, a home for leprosy patients and other disabled people. Fondly called Sadhanatai, she actively worked with her husband and dedicated her life in the service of leprosy affected people. She even joined her husband on the banks of Narmada in the support of Medha Patkar’s Narmada Bachao Andolan.

In her autobiography ‘Samittu’, she described how she and Baba carried out their mission fighting the difficulties they faced. ‘I had to become a mountain of ice to balance out the volcano called Baba Amte,’ Sadhanatai wrote in her book.

She has also mentioned in the book about her marriage and how Baba fought with the thieves and was covered with bandages on their wedding day.

Her autobiography has been translated in English and several Indian languages as it received tremendous response from readers all over the world.

Following their parents footsteps, Sons Vikas and Prakash are engaged in social service. Like his father, Prakash Amte and his wife Madakini Amte have received Magsaysay Award.

Honouring Sadhanatai’s wish, she would be buried in the same grave of her husband, who passed away in February, 2008. She had even selected the sari to be put on her for the last rites.

(Baba Amte with Sadhana Amte in an undated photo)

Her last rites will be performed at Anandwan on Sunday morning.

                         

Rising tattoo culture

If your grandmother or great grandmother spent her childhood in a village or a small town, there is a possibility that they might have seen their friends or relatives getting inked. Or they might be having a tattoo themselves.

But, this culture made its way back in India when Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan got his girlfriend’s (Kareena Kapoor) name inked on his arm. Interestingly, the tattoo was in Devnagari- not in English. Soon, many actors followed the suit.

In India, not only metros are witnessing the rise of tattoo culture but the small towns are also following this fashion. Around the world tattoo culture is at its peak. No one is shy from getting a tattoo as it is ‘cool’ and is also gaining acceptable in the society. That is the reason why tattoo business is expanding day by day in our country.

People get themselves inked for various reasons one being that it is a form of self-expression. Sometimes, they want to dedicate their tattoo either to god or to someone they love. Sometimes, it is just for an adventure or an experience.

According to American Association of Dermatologists, 50% of people who at some point of life decide to get a tattoo, later regret their decision and turn up for treatments. A famous example would be when Hollywood star Johnny Depp dedicated a tattoo ‘Winona forever’ to then-girlfriend Winona Ryder, after their break-up he had to get it changed to ‘Wino forever’

Though, this culture is slowly gaining acceptance, in some professions a tattoo is a big no-no especially if you are a part of corporate culture. The companies feel that this culture can be accepted by movie industry or advertising or media firms as their dealings are not that official.

‘If you say that tattoo culture is something which our ancestors used to follow then our parents and the society should be happy that atleast we are following some tradition’ adds Neha Singh, a class 12 passout.

Hollywood diva Angelina Jolie, who has fourteen tattoos, feels that all her tattoos came at good times. ‘A tattoo is something permanent when you've made a self-discovery or something you've come to a conclusion about’, she said.

A saying by an unknown author goes like this- Your body is a temple, but how long can you live in the same house before you redecorate? 

We have to wait and see if this is what the entire youth around the world thinks.

Image source- www.dailymail.co.uk

Time for Swayamvar!

Ratan ka Rishta (Swayamvar) concluded last week but, this time it garnered less TRPs than Rahul Mahajan and Rakhi Sawant’s Swayamvar. Despite that, media extensively covered someone else’s wedding for the last three months.

Apparently, Ratan Rajput was paid four crores or eight crores by NDTV Imagine. But, is it possible to find a soulmate in just three months?  When the same scenario is portrayed in films it looks believable but, real life is not even close to Bollywood films.

No one here is judging the authenticity of the show. But, this fact cannot be neglected that many ‘dulhas’ are part time actors. The trend of actors/actress participating in the show can be seen from the last two seasons of the show as well.

One candidate went on to say that he has to get married this year. So, even if it was someone else’s Swayamvar he would have participated in it. Problem is why to get married on reality show? This person ultimately got rejected and even got insulted by Ratan on a national television.

The problem is in the beginning of the show both Rakhi Sawant and Ratan Rajpoot claimed that they are getting married on the show. Both ended up just getting engaged. In fact, months after Rakhi’s Swayamvar she broke her engagement with Elesh Parujanwala. The separation took place way before the second season started.

After the Swayamvar and post her break up, Rakhi rose to fame. She got signed on for new ‘item’ songs, reality shows and even a movie.

The only person who got married was Rahul Mahajan (37) to Dimpy Ganguly (23) on the show. Though he was named a ‘wife beater’ and a ‘regular druggist’ by the media yet, thousands of girls came for the auditions. People started believing that there is a happy ending possible but, after a year or so there were reports that Rahul had beaten Dimpy brutally. Now, everything is going great in their paradise but for how long?

Stories of the Swayamvar will always be a part of Indian culture and tradition. But, this fact is also true that in today’s time couples are breaking up after 48 years of marriage (Mumbai Mirror, July 06, 2011). So, Swayamvar sounds a little impractical.

In her defence, Ratan said, ‘Actually, I had said that I cannot assure you that I would marry. Swayamvar means selecting your man and it is not like you have to marry the person on the same day. Even in the Ramayan, Sita did not get married on the same day that she selected Ram.’

There are reports already being circulated in the media that Abhinav Sharma (Ratan’s fiancé) is a manglik, which can be harmful for the marriage. She has told the media that she a firm believer in astrology.

Now, we just wait and watch whether Ratan gets her small, intimate wedding with Abhinav or not?

Photo credit- www.santabanta.com

Virtual Support through Social Networking

If you ‘get a Facebook’ for yourself to connect to other people then probably, you have made a good choice (depending, of course, on whether your contacts are on Facebook). Facebook is a social networking site that has an upward of 600 million users making it more populous than Singapore or Finland and ‘get a Facebook’ is a term used by youngsters that actually means creating a user account on Facebook.

Apart from general uses like catching up with acquaintances or a more unusual one like stalking, Facebook can also be used to fund your presidential campaign. Ask President of the United States of America, Barack Obama. In February 2008, John McCain raised $11 million for his presidential while that month Barack Obama attended no campaign fundraiser. Instead, Obama made use of online social networks to raise $55 million in those 29 days. Obama raised $639 million in entirety of which 87% was through social networking.

The point is if you have a cause, then you’ll get support from like-minded people by putting to use your social networking skills, online. You could list your cause on Causes, an application on Facebook enabling other users to view and back your cause. Camfed is an international NGO aimed towards fighting poverty and HIV/AIDS in Africa by educating girls. When Camfed started their cause, they had a small email list and a relatively unknown brand name. To jumpstart membership, two anonymous donors stepped up and offered to donate $1 for each person who joined their cause. They then offered to bring whoever recruited the most people to their cause on their next trip to Africa. Within a couple of months, their cause membership shot up to over 50,000 people. Now there are over 700,000 people in the cause and they have shifted their focus to emphasize fundraising. Camfed’s Ryan Quiel said, “It took Camfed 13 years to grow our list to 10,000 known supporters. With this campaign, our cause just gained 10,000 new known supporters in 2 days!”

Since its founding in 2007, Causes has enabled 25,000 non-profit organisations to raise $30 million with over 500,000 user-created causes.

With social networking one might be surprised through the medium through which they raise support. For instance, a fundraiser for a hospital for children received 163,078 donations from people playing Farmville, a popular game on Facebook where players farm virtually!

Mass participation and awareness weighs more than money and that is exactly what Anna Hazare needed. Today, Anna Hazare is the face of India's fight against corruption persuading the government to enact the Jan Lokpal Bill, a strong anti-corruption law. Anna began a fast unto death from 5 April 2011 at Jantar Mantar in Delhi to press for the demand to draft a new bill with stronger penal actions and more independence to the Lokpal and Lokayuktas (Ombudsmen in the states). Facebook recorded 40,000 supporters for Anna Hazare on the first day itself. Celebrities poured in their support online. Anna’s movement resonated with the youth and the educated class making it a different and impactful movement altogether. Currently he is at loggerheads with the government regarding the drafting of the Lokpal Bill. Hope this turns into another success story ringing in a whole new dimension to what can aptly be termed as Virtual Support.

Ever heard of Lip Scrubs?

(Product review)

Glitterbug, Shimmy Shimmy, Snow Fairy and Maple Fairy could very well qualify as names for a 5 year child’s imaginary pets but they are also names of Lush’s wide variety of products. Lush is a premium brand from UK that offers fresh handmade cosmetics. These cosmetics are made out of fresh fruits and vegetables, essential oils and safe synthetics.

Lush has a wide array of products ranging for hair and body care. However, one thing in its collection which will definitely catch your attention is the Lip Scrub. The concept of Lip Scrub is unheard in India. Also, lip care is usually ignored so, having an efficient product like Lip Scrub would be an added bonus in the cosmetic world. It is quite different from the regular lip balms available in the Indian cosmetic market. This Lip Scrub will basically scrub away your rough and dry skin and moisturize your lips. It is made up of caster sugar, organic jojoba oil and essential oils. This product caters to all the people who want their lips to be smooth, soft, delicious and healthy. The fragrance is simply amazing. Beauty experts are of the opinion that it is one of the best products that Lush has come out with recently.

There are three interesting flavours available in the market. Sweet Lips has the fragrance of cocoa and vanilla and tastes like chocolate chip cookies. Next is Bubble Gum which is inspired from its bestselling shower gel: Snow Fairy, which smells and tastes delicious. Then there is Mint Julips which emanates the flavour of after mint leaving behind a refreshingly tingly feeling.

Being priced at Rs. 600 for 25 grams it is on the expensive side but the product experience is unforgettable. This product is suited for both children and adults.

For locating a Lush store near your city you can visit the website www.lushindia.com